Article
Discipling New Christians with Ancient Tools: Catechesis in Church Planting
Thomas West
What tools can we use to help new believers sink their roots deep into the gospel story?
Church planting is exhilarating. New life is springing up, new people are being reached, and new believers are entering into the joy of knowing Christ. But every church planter knows that the early days of growth come with a sobering challenge: how do you disciple new believers quickly, deeply, and sustainably?
The apostle Paul’s words in Colossians 2:6-7 provide both the goal and the method: “So then, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in him, being rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing with gratitude.” Paul’s vision is clear: conversion is not the finish line but the starting line. Followers of Jesus Christ need to be rooted, built up, and established.
A key question for pastors and planters today is: What tools can we use to help new believers sink their roots deep into the gospel story?
A Tool for Today
The Gospel Way Catechism was born out of a partnership with Trevin Wax during a season when I was living in London, planting a church in one of the most secular cities in the world. We saw first-hand the fragility of faith among new believers. People were hungry for hope, but their foundations were shaky. We needed a way to establish Christians clearly and deeply in the gospel. We also needed a tool that got the right topics in the right order.
A question Trevin and I wrestled with was: How can we equip churches to disciple new believers in a way that is both biblically faithful and culturally aware? The answer was to retrieve the ancient practice of catechesis for the modern church.
What Catechism Is (and Isn’t)
The word “catechism” may sound like it belongs to another era. For some, it evokes dusty classrooms, rote recitation, or rigid religion. But catechism simply means “instruction.” At its best, catechism is not about memorizing lifeless words but about embedding the living Word into the heart.
A catechism provides clear, memorable, repeatable language for the truths of Scripture. It helps new believers learn not only what Christians believe but also why those beliefs matter for life and witness. In a world of competing truth claims, catechesis helps people develop gospel instincts: reflexes of faith that respond to the cultural narratives all around us.
Why New Believers Need Catechesis
For new believers, catechesis is not optional—it’s urgent. Imagine planting a tree: if the roots don’t go down quickly, the first strong wind may topple it. The same is true spiritually. Without grounding in Scripture and doctrine, new believers often struggle to withstand trials, doubts, or cultural pressures.
Catechesis answers fundamental questions:
- Who is God, and what is He like?
- Who am I as a human being made in His image?
- What has Christ done to save me?
- What is the church, and why do I need it?
- How am I to live in this world as a follower of Jesus?
Without clear answers, new believers will look elsewhere—to culture, peers, or personal feelings—for guidance. For centuries, Christians in all sorts of denominations and tribes have relied on catechisms to ensure believers are rooted in the gospel. It’s time for a new wave of church planters to rise up and do the same.
Out-Narrating the World
The late Tim Keller called for a new “counter-catechesis for our digital age.” He warned that the culture is catechizing us every day—through advertising, politics, entertainment, and social media. Every church planter knows: the world is already catechizing people. From Netflix to TikTok to advertising slogans, we are immersed in stories that tell us who we are, what the good life is, and how we can find meaning. These narratives are powerful because they are repeated, memorable, and emotionally charged. They shape people’s instincts long before they ever darken the door of a church.
If the church is not intentional, new believers will continue to live by those cultural stories while trying to add Jesus on top. That’s a recipe for shallow discipleship and eventual drift. The only way to counter false stories is to tell the better, truer story—and to tell it more clearly, more beautifully, and more persistently than the world does.
That’s where catechesis comes in. At its core, catechesis is story-shaped discipleship. The Gospel Way Catechism doesn’t just drop doctrinal truth in isolation; it narrates the Bible’s storyline—creation, fall, redemption, new creation—and shows how every doctrine flows from the gospel. This is how new believers learn not just answers, but how to see the world differently.
When we root new Christians in God’s story, we are helping them re-narrate their lives. Instead of being defined by consumerism, expressive individualism, or despair, they come to see themselves as beloved children of God, participants in His kingdom, and witnesses to His glory. And when believers can tell that story, they are ready to stand firm in faith and to share Christ with others.
How to Use a Catechism with New Believers
A catechism is not a book you hand someone and hope they’ll read. It’s a relational tool. Here are several ways planters and pastors can use it:
- One-on-One Discipleship. Meet weekly with a new believer, walking through one or two questions at a time. Read the Scripture together, talk through the answer, and pray it into life.
- Small Groups and Classes. Incorporate catechism into a new believers’ class, membership pathway, or small group curriculum. Questions spark discussion and help people verbalize faith.
- Family and Household Use. Encourage parents to use catechism in the home. Children often memorize quickly, and parents grow as they lead.
- Preaching and Worship Integration. Use catechism questions as part of liturgy, call-and-response moments, or sermon reinforcement. Over time, the truths of Scripture become embedded in the church’s collective memory.
Catechesis and the Mission of the Church
Mission without discipleship is short-lived. If we want churches that endure, we must disciple believers who endure. Catechesis is one of the simplest, most effective ways to root new Christians in the faith and prepare them for a lifetime of following Jesus.
For planters and pastors asking how to disciple new believers, the answer may be as old as the church itself: teach them the faith, one question and answer at a time.
Because here’s the truth: a catechized believer is a witnessing believer. Rooted in the gospel, they can resist cultural confusion and radiate gospel clarity in a world desperate for good news.
